Intel Buys Basic Science Makers of Health Band

Chipmaker Intel has added Basis Band to its growing number of wearable technologies. Intel acquired Basic Science a high-end health tracker in just one more sign that wearable devices are becoming mainstream.

The startup, based in San Francisco produces the Basis band, which is billed as a wristband that is advanced in health tracking.

Intel did not release the terms of the acquisition but said that trackers will be sold and supported in their existing channels.

Intel officials said the strategy was to create reference devices that are wearable, known as system on a chip or SoCs, and other tech platforms that are ready to use by customers in the growing development of wearable tech products.

The Basis will now be incorporated into the New Devices Group at Intel, where former CEO of Basis Jef Holove, will be a general manager.

Basis on a blog post wrote that Intel has a wearables strategy that is very broad and now Basis is a key part of that.

At the recent CES 2014, Brian Krzanich, the CEO at Intel focused on the push by the company into wearables in the keynote address. He showed off the new smart earbuds that runners can use to measure their heart rate and to display data back to a smartphone screen.

Krzanich also featured a personal assistant earpiece that is smooth talking known as Jarvis. It can scan emails and make your dinner reservations.

In 2013, Thalmic Labs was invested in by Intel. Thalmic makes the gestural armband MYO. They also invested in Recon Instruments the company behind Jet, a heads up display used for sports that is similar in some ways to the Google Glass.